How Executives Can Use Mentoring to Shape a Positive Workplace Culture

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An effective mentorship program can completely reshape your workplace culture and will empower your team to make the most of their time at your firm. Executive mentoring is particularly powerful, as senior leaders have a broader perspective than line managers.

Hands-on mentoring from the executive level can prepare your firm’s leaders for the future, too. This can be transformative if you’re used to experiencing high turnover and regularly lose your top talent to competitors.

However, before you roll out a mentorship program, you should assess your employee’s needs to ensure your feedback is relevant, useful, timely, and supportive. This will make the most of your time with mentees and will turn your young employees into top talent.

Growth Culture

Every executive wants to create a growth culture at work. However, few business leaders actually take action to instil the kinds of cultural changes they’re looking for. This is a real issue, as 81% of young employees want to feel comfortable about their professional goals, yet many find that their employer doesn’t truly care about their aspirations.

As an executive, you should embrace cross-generational mentoring and connect with your younger employees to create a more positive workplace culture. You can do this by learning more about social change, racial equity, and environmental protection as these are key issues that impact Gen Z and millennials.

When you roll out your new mentorship program, you may find that uptake is low in the early stages. This is understandable, as most folks would rather spend their time on their core responsibilities. You can quickly increase interest in your mentorship program by creating fun activities that draw people in, like:

• Offer to host the mentorship meeting at a local coffee shop
• Create a mentorship book club at work
• Shadow your employees' work, so you can better understand what they do
• Find mutually beneficial podcasts to discuss
• Host networking events at your work so folks can expand their professional reach

These mentorship initiatives are valuable for employees and show your team that you care about their long-term growth. Taking steps like setting up a book club or podcast group will naturally appeal to your most engaged employees and is sure to draw folks who have aspirations for future success.

Job Satisfaction

Creating an environment where folks like working is easier said than done. According to a 2021 report from the American Psychological Association, 79% of employees experienced work-related stress, and nearly 3 in 5 employees reported negative impacts of work-related stress like fatigue, headaches, and cognitive weariness.

You can use your time in mentorship meetings to better understand the source of your employee's stress, and suggest methods for improved stress management. Crucially, you must act on the feedback that your team gives you during this time, as folks will be far more willing to come forward with concerns if they feel that you will make real changes to workplace policies based on their insights.

Providing consistent feedback and reliable support helps employees feel comfortable at work, too. This is crucial if you want to create a positive workplace culture, as folks will only engage with culture-boosting initiatives if they feel secure in their role and supported by leadership. As a mentor, simple changes to the way you communicate with staff — like asking about how their professional network is growing — show that you authentically care about their job satisfaction and are willing to make changes if they’re feeling disenfranchised.

Inclusion

Mentorship can help folks feel at home at your firm. By hosting meaningful mentorship sessions, you give employees a chance to express their concerns about poor representation and can start to workshop ideas to improve inclusivity at your business. This boosts employee well-being and shows your team you are serious about their needs.

Championing inclusivity is particularly important at the executive level. Other employees are far more likely to take your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives seriously if you set aside time to bring it up in one-on-one meetings. By highlighting issues in a private conversation, you can hold folks accountable while showing them that you still value them as employees. This can improve uptake in DEI schemes while maintaining high morale at your place of work.

Work-Life Balance

Providing consistent feedback from the executive level can help younger employees achieve a better work-life balance, too. Many younger employees overwork themselves due to fears about poor performance and a desire to stand out from the crowd. While this may temporarily increase productivity, overworking is sure to lead to burnout, fatigue, and higher turnover rates.

As a leader, you can combat overworking by sharing strategies to balance personal interests with professional goals. This should include strategic tips like:

• Reassess Priorities: Young employees may be tempted to over-prioritise work. As an executive, you can use your experience to show them that taking time to focus on hobbies won’t set back their professional goals. Rather, prioritising personal passion will empower them and help them feel refreshed at work.
• Practice Saying “No”: Empower your team by showing them that it is OK for them to say “No” when asked to complete overtime or cram in additional work. By reassuring staff who struggle to set boundaries, you show them that their needs and wants are valid.
• Create Schedules: Show your staff that you’re serious about helping them by sharing the way you schedule your day. Show them where you’ve allocated time for hobbies, and don’t be shy about showing where you have free time. As a role model, this shows your team that they don’t need to overwork and should make time for themselves.
• Set Some Goals: As a mentor at work, you should take some interest in your team’s personal lives. If a team member seems to be struggling to maintain a work-life balance, offer your expertise by helping them set hobby-related goals that have nothing to do with productivity at work.

Taking these steps shows your less experienced employees that you’re serious about their wellness. Setting aside some time to talk about non-professional pursuits can help you better understand your team and improve your professional relationships with them. Just be sure to consider boundaries before giving tips on people’s personal lives, as, understandably, some folks won’t want to talk about how they spend their free time with you.

Conclusion

Building a positive workplace culture starts at the executive level. Get the ball rolling by building mentorship programs like one-on-ones and book clubs that help you show your support for your employees while giving you a chance to better understand their needs.

Author Bio

Indiana Lee is a freelance journalist with a keen focus on leadership and career advancement. Her writing aims to provide insights that promote personal and professional growth. Connect with her on LinkedIn.